On June 5, 2022, the Japanese Language Scholarship Foundation hosted the 18th Annual All-U.S.A. High School Japanese Speech Contest.
The contest featured eleven (11) participants carefully selected from applicants recommended by organizers of regional speech contests held across the country.
Each student was judged on following criteria:
CONTENT - Selection of theme, originality, creativity, and ability to touch the audience’s heart
STRUCTURE - How well the speech is organized and how logically and smoothly the argument or the content flows
JAPANESE LANGUAGE - Appropriate use of sentence structure and vocabulary, and accuracy of pronunciation and accent — or comprehensibility
OVER-ALL IMPRESSION - Attitude, posture, voice audibility, connection with the audience, including eye contact, and fluency
INTERVIEW responses with clear and appropriate answers.
Coming out on top of the competition was the winner of the 2022 Texas State Japanese Language Speech Contest – Blessing Adanuri Anyiam of L.V. Berkner High School in Richardson, Texas.
Anyiam-san’s speech -- "The Courage to Face Myself" or 自分向き合えた勇気」-- discussed her fears of entering high school as well as her experiences during quarantine. The speech highlighted the transformative power of new encounters on one's personality and character.
JASH has seen several of our Texas State Japanese Speech Contest winners go on to become runners up at the All-U.S.A. High School Japanese Speech Contest and represent the United States in the International Japanese Language Speech Contest. However, this is the first time in nearly ten years that a Texas student has claimed 1st prize.
Congratulations to Anyiam-san and her instructor Mrs. Mayumi McDonald!
To watch Anyiam-san’s speech click on the link below and fast forward to 18:10.